Anglers catch the blues at Norman

Friday

Jan 18, 2013 at 12:01 AM

When someone catches the blues, most of us think of a person fraught with despair and sadness. That wasn't the case last Saturday at Lake Norman when the fishermen who caught the blues — blue catfish, that is — were grinning ear to ear.

tony garitta

When someone catches the blues, most of us think of a person fraught with despair and sadness. That wasn't the case last Saturday at Lake Norman when the fishermen who caught the blues — blue catfish, that is — were grinning ear to ear. Ken Tucker of Lincolnton and Aaron Ciucevich of Harrisburg displayed the biggest grins after bringing two blue cats to the scales that weighed 55.7 pounds to top the 21 teams at the N.C. Catfish Association Tournament Series (NCCATS) event.Tucker and Ciucevich (jokingly pronounced "Czechoslovakia" by his buddies) won $330 for first place and an additional $400 for the side pot. They collected another $210 for the big-fish award with a stunning 39.2-pound blue catfish.The two cat fishermen caught the blues in 20 feet of water with cut gizzard shad."We had only four bites all day," said Tucker. "We missed two and got the other two, and those were the bites that counted."The Stanly team of Lonnie White and Phil Leonard placed second with two catfish weighing 36.1 pounds. Their catch was anchored with a 25.7-pound blue catfish. They collected $150.Nick and Daniel Jeffers, both of Dallas, ranked third with two cats totaling 35.2 pounds, a catch bolstered by a 29.1-pound blue cat, the second-biggest fish of the day. They received $100.The fourth and last money spot went to a trio of fishermen from Maiden: Justin Edwards, Jonathan Goodson, and Trevor Murphy. They had two fish that went 34.8 pounds and paid $50.The tournament was the NCCATS kickoff event for 2013. The next contest is set for Feb. 9 at Lake Tillery out of the Swift Landing.The unseasonably warm weather Saturday with temperatures in the lower 70s under partly cloudy skies and an occasional drizzle brought a surge of fishermen to Norman. The Pinnacle Access was still nearly filled to capacity with boat trailers at 3 p.m.The winners of the June 2012 Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament out of Morehead City may be determined not by the weight of the fish but by a N.C. Supreme Court decision.The bizarre happening unfolded when the Citation's team boated an 883-pound blue marlin, by far the biggest fish of the event and the team awaited its $912,825 in prize money.However, tournament officials discovered that one crew member, Peter Wann of Alexandria, Va., did not have a N.C. fishing license because Wann thought the boat had a blanket license that covered everyone onboard. Wann and the captain of the Citation's team, Eric Holmes of Buxton, also missed a pre-tournament meeting that informed participants that each one onboard must possess a valid fishing license.Once the crew discovered its error, the required licenses for Wann were purchased onboard through a laptop computer, but the license purchase took place after the big marlin was caught.Tournament officials disqualified the crew, but the Citation's team sued the organization for breach of contract for not being awarded the money. The case went to Superior Court where the ruling favored the Big Rock tournament officials. The crews of the Carnivore and Wet and Wild were moved to first and second in the standings and awarded the prize money accordingly.End of this sea saga? Not quite. The Citation's team appealed the ruling and an appellate judge ruled in favor of the anglers, contending that the broken rule was not significant enough to warrant disqualification.The case is now going before the N.C. Supreme Court which will determine who lands the prize money.Although the water level at Badin Lake is now five feet within full pool, the public boating access areas remain closed as indicated on the Alcoa and N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission websites. The landings are scheduled to reopen Feb. 1.According to AnglersSurvey.com, online fishing license sales have increased 13 percent since 2009. Today, 29 percent of all anglers surveyed indicated they purchased their licenses online."Making the online purchase process simple, like including a mobile option, has been a focus in our State Marketing Program, where we work with state agencies to help bring back lapsed anglers and boaters who once experienced the joys of fishing and boating," said Frank Peterson of the Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation. Tony Garitta is a fishing columnist for The Dispatch.